Households have a variety of fuels to choose from when it comes to heating. Natural Gas is the most common choice in Somerset, used by 2,627,206 or 74% of residents. The 2nd most popular primary heating fuel for Somerset families is Electricity, used by 617,773 homes (17%). The remaining homes are heated with Heating Oil (5%), Propane (2%), Other (0.4%), and Solar (0.3%).

Somerset County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (in Number of Households)

Year	Natural Gas	Propane	Electricity	Oil	Wood	Solar	Other
2025	2,627,206	70,406	617,773	185,324	10,688	11,798	14,006
2024	2,623,428	66,233	592,186	198,050	10,223	10,926	13,381
2023	2,552,593	95,605	606,537	215,314	10,749	9,388	20,755
2022	2,560,329	89,511	568,299	231,690	10,054	7,925	17,145
2021	2,545,038	87,258	555,363	240,765	9,820	7,643	19,506
2020	2,509,666	79,338	501,738	241,254	10,094	6,464	16,414
2019	2,474,295	71,419	448,114	241,742	10,368	5,284	13,323
2018	2,435,183	67,930	437,888	258,889	12,069	4,626	14,313
2017	2,425,008	62,490	415,119	271,265	11,994	4,801	12,938
2016	2,389,530	59,916	423,650	271,179	13,466	3,212	14,924
2015	2,398,744	61,082	385,792	299,222	14,398	1,781	12,721
2014	2,393,423	62,396	384,329	309,236	14,471	1,748	13,957
2013	2,354,824	60,943	388,226	329,733	17,421	1,270	10,710
2012	2,368,222	60,990	377,997	356,378	13,974	1,002	10,889
2011	2,342,608	58,315	360,855	376,568	11,869	332	7,917
2010	2,344,455	63,241	343,112	392,540	11,886	325	8,439

Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Somerset

Fuel oil has become decreasing in demand in Somerset. In the 7 years since 2018, the number of families using oil fell from 258,889 to 185,324, a 28% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Somerset

Between 2018 and today, the number of houses using propane as the primary space heating fuel ramped up from 67,930 to 70,406, a 4% change. Comparing 2018 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel ramped up from 2,435,183 to 2,627,206, a 8% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Somerset

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more popular in Somerset. Since 2018, the number of homes heating with electricity increased from 437,888 to 617,773, a 41% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Somerset

Out of all fuels, solar is the safest for the environment. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid flows between solar panels on a home’s roof and a heat energy storage tank (similar to a hot water heater) in the basement. Now, 11,798 homes in Somerset are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 155% gain from 2018, when 4,626 homes had active solar heating.

Somerset County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Somerset County homeowners purchased a total of 4 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Somerset’s overall fuel oil consumption varies annually based on the severity of the winter. As the temperature outside gets colder, homes’ furnaces need to burn additional oil to keep the house warm inside. Last winter, the average outside temperature in Somerset was 33.5°F, which was 4.7°F colder than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Somerset County Average Winter Temperature

Heating Season	Average Temperature
2024 - 2025	33.5° F
2023 - 2024	38.2° F

Somerset County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Somerset homes heating with heating oil, selecting which of the 32 heating oil companies that serve Somerset makes a big difference.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who are willing to pay a premium for a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system select one of the 71 “full-service” oil companies that serve Somerset. Full service companies such as Patriot Discount Oil or Skylands Energy Service offer households annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic oil delivery and furnace repair. With an automatic oil delivery contract, the company tracks your home’s fuel oil consumption and makes deliveries when your tank is running low. The household does not need to monitor the level of the oil tank or place individual orders.

Discount Oil Companies: also referred to as “COD Fuel” or “Cash Heating Oil” companies, discount oil companies are for families who are budget-conscious. With discount oil companies, in return for better prices, you monitor the fuel oil level in your tank, and you place an oil order when the oil gauge dips below a quarter tank. Some of the 2 Somerset cash heating oil companies serving Somerset include Hackettstown Corporation and Affordable Oil.

Somerset Fuel Oil Company Statistics: Heating oil Companies Serving Somerset: 32 companies .
Average Number of Somerset Households Served per Fuel Oil company : 5791

Somerset Heating Oil Delivery Overview

185,324 houses in Somerset heat their homes with heating oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Somerset temperatures drop as low as 28.8° F each winter. 5.2% of Somerset houses rely on number two heating oil delivery each winter.

2.6% of Somerset County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Somerset County Households	Somerset County Heating Oil Households
7.1M	185,324

229 Somerset Oil Companies You Can Bank On

With 169,797,916 gallons of heating oil delivered to Somerset homeowners during this past winter, the Somerset community depends on its 229 oil companies to keep their oil tanks full. Oil delivery has two parts to it: First, an oil truck picks up oil at the nearest bulk fuel terminal (also known as a “rack”). In the case of Somerset, two of the closest terminals are Sunoco in Linden, NJ and Sunoco in Linden, NJ. Then, the truck delivers the number two heating oil to homes and businesses throughout Somerset and the surrounding vicinity.

Heating Oil Near You In These Adjacent Counties